"All those wasted miles/ All those aimless drives through green aisles/ Our careless lifestyle/ It was not so unwise.” On “Green Aisles”, the second track from Real Estate’s second album, lead singer Martin Courtney pretty much delivers the thesis statement of his band’s existence. more ›

M83, the brainchild of French synth magician Anthony Gonzalez, is on a roll: it seems that every album he releases is blessed with terms like “cinematic,” “epic,” “monumental,” and, of course, “best new music.” On the merits of his sprawling and fantastic most recent opus, the double-LP Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, Gonzalez reentered the limelight as a Los Angeles resident and somewhat reluctant superstar. This past weekend he and his band tore up Auditorium Shores, so we decided we should have a chat with the man about his online request for a new band member, the death of the CD, and not remembering his dreams. more ›

The resurgence of the synth-pop movement might just be encapsulated by M83's sixth album, Hurry Up We're Dreaming!, in twenty-two songs split evenly across two discs. The epic "Intro" song gives the listener direct cues for what's in store. Tantalizing and ever-evolving, it leads to "Midnight City", which serves as the first single off the album. With a catchy, squeaky hook, the song continues the journey with an immediate dance loop. A remixes EP of the song is already available, and you can listen to all the iterations here. more ›

So yes, you all broke out your nautical knowledge and decoded the first five bands announced in the line-up leak. More on the announcement follows. more ›

On The Killers' debut album Hot Fuss, the group became hugely popular by striving to be the next Duran Duran. Their second album, Sam's Town, found them grasping for a fusion of Bruce Springsteen and Queen, but coming up mostly empty save for two great singles ("When You Were Young" and "Read My Mind," both of which need no defense). Over Thanksgiving weekend, the band released Day and Age, which finally dropped them off at a musically appropriate spot: mid-'80s, pop star Bowie. The album literally begins by sounding like "Young Americans," and it makes a lot of sense: The Killers are more serious than the average pop group, but are too pretty and radio-friendly for indie rock. And despite some questionable grammar, there's no doubt that recent single "Human" will sound as great in a basketball stadium as it does in your car. To that end, the band arrives on a high after being announced as a Coachella 2009 headliner late last week - to put that in perspective, the other two are The Cure and Paul McCartney. more ›

Whether it's love, death, or racing down the night highway in a blind panic, no musician can pull off the electro-melodrama like Anthony Gonzales, otherwise known as M83, the undisputed king of sensational, overwrought shoegaze. With 2005's Before the Dawn Heals Us, M83 veered a wild right away from its beginnings in otherwise humble ambience and synth-heavy noodling, catapulting over a dead-man's curve and emerging from the wreckage rejuvenated. From curb to coma, BTDHS was a thrilling experience. Unabashedly incorporating dramatic vocal samples and recursive opacity a la David Lynch's Mulholland Drive by way of the hard obsidian aesthetic of DePalma's Heat, the album went for broke on every track. It wasn't surprising to find one's self panting heavily after a listen-through. more ›